Rustam Minnikhanov

Rustam Nurgaliyevich Minnikhanov (1 March 1957-) was the Prime Minister of Tatarstan from 10 July 1998 to 25 March 2010, succeeding Mintimer Shaimiev and preceding Ildar Khalikov and President of Tatarstan from 25 March 2010, succeeding Mintimer Shaimiev.

Biography
Rustam Nurgaliyevich Minnikhanov was born on 1 March 1957 in Novyi Arysh, Tatar ASSR, Soviet Union to a family of Sunni Muslim Volga Tatars. In 1978 he graduated from the Kazan Agricultural Institute as a mechanical engineer before becoming a doctor of economic sciences. From 1985 to 1993 he was chairman of the District Consumer Society Board, and in November 1996 he became Minister of Finance of Tatarstan under the Russian Federation. He was involved in industry while being a politician, and he was enthusiastic for technological innovation while serving as Prime Minister from 1998 to 2010 under President Mintimer Shaimiev. On 25 March 2010 he became President of Tatarstan under Dmitry Medvedev, and during the 2014 Crimean Crisis he mediated between the Crimean Tatars and the Russian government over their possible persecution if they came under Russian rule.